The hurrier I go, the behinder I get....

Anyone else feel this way?

Despite not being personally involved in Saturday's wedding, hubby and I had a long day. When the alarm went off Sunday morning, I reminded it that we are retired, hubby didn't have golf scheduled and it really should shut itself up. Then I  remembered that we were going to the cottage and wanted to get there before the kids.

Unlike hubby who wears clothes that he leaves at the cottage which he thinks are "good enough", I had clothes to pack. And shoes. And since we'd be there for Memorial Day, I needed to pack red, white and blue apparel just as I do on the 4th of July.

I came downstairs with my stuff to find that Bill had taken the box of dry food to the car already. I still had stuff to put in the box. "Stick it in a bag" was his answer. I guess that was better than just telling me to "stick it".

We packed the cooler and an insulated bag with enough food to feed an army. We packed some toys for Colton and his booster seat. We packed the monitor and keyboard that I used before my new setup here. Last week we took an old computer from work that was to be left at the cottage. While slow, it would be ok for Bill's minimal usage and we could use the printer that is too old to use with the new setup at home. What I discovered last week is that I forgot the installation disk for the printer, the monitor would not come into sharp focus, the keyboard had one leg broken and had to sit flat, and the speakers wouldn't work because they couldn't find a sound card.

Soon we were off. Or maybe we've always been 'off', but soon we were headed to the cottage.

Many trips from car to cottage to unload were followed by 30 minutes of putting things away, opening windows, and spritzing Fabreeze air freshener. A neighbor came over to tell us two transformers had blown that morning and our end of the island had experienced a power surge. The electric company was making repairs and should be done within 30 minutes, but we shouldn't run the TV or computer until 11:00. Our appliances seemed ok and Bill used a meter to test most of our outlets which were fine. (Doesn't everyone's husband have meters both at home and at the cottage for this stuff?). We sat for a minute, and then the kids called to say they were delayed leaving but would be there by noon. I swear I could hear my alarm clock at home snickering.

* Sigh  *

Our cottage has commercial grade carpeting throughout. Not our plan, but fairly new when we bought the place. Hubby and I periodically talk about a few things we I would like to change at the cottage. He agrees that the carpet has to be replaced, but if we remodel the kitchen or eliminate an unnecessary door wall, that would change carpet layout. The cottage definitely needs to remain a low maintenance place so structural changes would have to blend and compliment old paneling that would never be matched now.

Until we can decide what to do and find someone to work with us, we must get the carpeting clean. Renting a cleaner and taking it to a cottage on the island isn't happening. Rental cleaners, in my experience, aren't good for heavy duty dirt. The cleaning company we use at home doesn't go as far north as the island. There is a man on the island who cleans carpets, but he doesn't dry them well. Can't you picture very damp carpeting being closed up in a hot, humid cottage for a week between our visits? I have one number to call tomorrow. I hope I can key in the number while my fingers are crossed.

The kids left last night, Bill and I regrouped and enjoyed the quiet while almost immediately missing the little guy's presence. It was now time to see if using a different monitor would eliminate the focus problem, install the printer driver and change keyboards. We turned the computer on and nothing happened. Uh oh. The TV works, the lamp and phone on the same surge protector work, but not the computer.

* Sigh, again *

There was much less to pack coming home. The refrigerated items condensed to half a cooler. Colton's toys and booster seat made it back safely. I thought the whole PC, monitor, keyboard, printer would be going to an electronics graveyard, but no, only the computer came home. Bill wants our techie to look at it and either heal it or pronounce it DOA.

I dream that one day I will write about a week or weekend where everything went as planned, nothing broke or inconvenience us, cost more than expected and didn't result in schlepping stuff home that I thought was staying at the cottage or vice versa.

But then, what would I write about?


P.S.   Anyone else having trouble editing with Blogger? I hesitate to sound like I'm complaining again (which I am) but I've about had it with things not working as they once did here and on Facebook. Facebook I could turn my back on and not have regrets, but I can't leave Blog-land!